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Cop Suckers

In "The Other Guys", Samuel L. Jackson and Dwayne Johnson play Detectives Highsmith and Danson, the kind of supercops you might find in a movie like "Lethal Weapon" or "Die Hard". When the film opens, they're in medias chase through the streets of Manhattan - Danson on top of a perp's van, Highsmith in hot pursuit. It's a spectacularly over-the-top sequence resulting in millions of dollars in property damage. Of course, Highsmith and Danson get their man and win the day. But this movie isn't about them (cue a record scratch sound effect).

No, "The Other Guys" is about the cops back at the precinct. The ones tackling the everyday cases and doing the paperwork. Y'know, the other guys. It's a cheeky concept for an action-comedy and, in the hands of director Adam McKay, it's a pretty funny one too.

The duo of the title are Detectives Gamble and Hoitz, played by constant-McKay-partner Will Ferrell and trying-on-comedy-for-size Mark Wahlberg. Mr. Ferrell plays it uber-square; he's a paper-pusher from "forensic accounting" who's been partnered with Mr. Wahlberg's frustrated cop. It seems Hoitz was busted to desk-duty after accidentally (and hysterically) shooting Derek Jeter. Needless to say, the two are not exactly respected by their fellow officers.

Mr. Wahlberg isn't exactly comfortable playing the type of broad comedy that comes so easily to Mr. Ferrell. But his discomfort actually works for the role. His Hoitz alternates between annoyed rage and annoyed desperation and, like the film itself, he hits more often than he misses. He's also surrounded by a game cast, including the ever-present Rob Riggle, and Michael Keaton (great to see him again) as the beleaguered precinct captain.

The plot revolves (loosely) around a ripped-from-the-headlines Ponzi scheme involving a perfectly cast Steve Coogan. As you might expect, it runs out of steam in the end as the boys find themselves careening through the streets of Manhattan in an ever-increasing barrage of gunfire, screeching tires and helicopters. Big budgets are never the friend of action-comedies - just see "The Last Action Hero" if you don't believe me.

Along the way the script, by Mr. McKay and Chris Henchy, keeps the pace quick and the jokes quicker. Their recipe for comedy seems to be: (1) take a typical scene from a cop movie (the funeral of a colleague, talking-a-jumper-off-a-ledge), (2) add something quirky to it (a whispered argument, a Mr. Softee truck), (3) sprinkle in a dash of ad-libbery and let simmer for only slightly longer than you'd expect. And there you have it: comedy gold! Of course, it helps to have Mr. Ferrell in fine form. He could do this character in his sleep, and he seems to enjoy having Mr. Wahlberg to play off.

The humor in the film is a lot like that ending chase scene. There's a barrage of comedy bullets. Some hit the target (a running gag featuring Eva Mendes as Gamble's hot wife; Mr. Keaton's Captain inadvertently quoting the group TLC) and some don't (the backstory with Hoitz' girlfriend is dead-air). But in the end, like our heroes, it gets the job done.